The image shows examples of doll clothes using bias tape, rickrack trim, and a braided trim, but the text above these images says, "Trims: ribbons, rick rack, and more." This store item includes affiliate marketing links to ribbon, braided trim, fringe, embroidered trim, lace trim, eyelet ruffle trim, rickrack trim, and others will be added over time.

New product in the Chelly Wood store: Trims… including ribbon, rickrack, and more!

This  past week, I’ve had a lot of fun writing blog posts on “10 Ways to Use Ribbons” and “5 Commonly Used Trims” for your doll clothes sewing projects. Now I’m going to make a quick announcement that such items as rickrack trim, ribbons, bias tape, and braided fringe — those items can now be found in the “Trims” section of my online store. This … Continue reading New product in the Chelly Wood store: Trims… including ribbon, rickrack, and more!

An LOL Surprise! OMG Royal Bee Fashion Doll (9 inches tall) models a pair of handmade Halloween print cotton cargo pants with bright orange big pockets on the sides of the pants, and with these elastic-waist pants, she wears a simple tee shirt. The text over the image says "free pattern" and the Chelly Wood dot com logo appears in the lower left corner of the image which is superimposed on a turquoise blue linen background.

Sew a pair of Halloween cargo pants for 9 inch dolls with today’s free patterns!

It’s almost Halloween, so I decided to revisit an old pattern of mine, and turn it into a pair of Halloween pants (or Halloween cargo pants) for 9 inch dolls. This was originally designed to be a pair of capris for Skipper and other 10 inch dolls, but when I discovered that they fit Moana and Ideal Pepper as regular-length pants, it got me thinking… … Continue reading Sew a pair of Halloween cargo pants for 9 inch dolls with today’s free patterns!

On a purple cotton background with a turquoise blue ribbon title that states in white words, "five types of trim to use when sewing doll clothes" we see a photo of a woman's well-manicured hands poised a top pink fabric, as she applies a wavy lace trim with the sewing machine's presser foot's needle in the center of the photograph.

5 commonly used trims for sewing doll clothes #Sewing #DollClothes

Yesterday I posted a whole article on the ten ways you can use ribbon trims. (Click that link to go back and read it.) So today I’m going to skip over ribbon as one of the five commonly used trims for embellishing doll clothes. Ribbon is probably the most common form of trim that doll clothing sewing enthusiasts tend to use. It’s inexpensive, it comes … Continue reading 5 commonly used trims for sewing doll clothes #Sewing #DollClothes

The text at the top of this image says "10 ways to use ribbons with doll clothes" and under the text, is an image of a variety of ribbon spools in a number of different sizes and colors.

Here are 10 ways to use ribbons when sewing doll clothes…

When I did a recent search for photos of doll clothes with ribbons, here on my website, I discovered that I have uploaded 240 images in the website’s archives, showing the many ways you can apply ribbons to doll clothes. Holy smokes! I’ve sifted through those archived photos and done a quick study of them. And here, in some semblance of order, are the top … Continue reading Here are 10 ways to use ribbons when sewing doll clothes…

This image is a quilt-like square with the Chelly Wood logo turned on its side. Beside the logo, we see a photo of Simplicity doll clothes pattern 8466 from the late 1960's or early 1970's. The dolls on the cover of this pattern are dressed in various fashions including one long dress pattern that uses an empire waist.

Learning to sew with Simplicity 8466 vintage Barbie doll clothes pattern #VintageBarbie #DollClothesPatterns

I had so so much fun sewing the red satin dress in this Simplicity 8466 doll clothes pattern! I’ll never forget that feeling of satisfaction, when it turned out perfectly! Just have a look: It looks pretty similar, doesn’t it? Wow. I couldn’t have been more pleased… I’ve created blog posts that describe how I made this satin dress, and over the years, I’ve talked … Continue reading Learning to sew with Simplicity 8466 vintage Barbie doll clothes pattern #VintageBarbie #DollClothesPatterns

Within a quilted frame, we see a stitched-style title that says "Doll Clothes Collars" and three different images of dolls wearing doll clothes with collars. On the far left is a baby doll in a plaid suit with his little white shirt having a pressed collar; in the middle is an 18 inch doll wearing a dress with a jacket that has a pretty pink collar, and on the right is a Ken doll wearing a Hawaiian shirt with a collar. In the lower left is the ChellyWood.com logo.

5 Tips for Making Doll Clothes Collars

For the most faithful Chelly Wood website readers out there, this is a re-posting of a blog post from about a year ago. The topic is still relevant of course, and I welcome everyone’s comments and suggestions in the discussion area at the bottom of the post! Nobody wants their doll’s collar to stick up all willie-nillie, right? Of course not! So here, all in … Continue reading 5 Tips for Making Doll Clothes Collars

The image shows a turquoise blue cotton fabric with the words "inspirational jazz for sewing doll clothes" across the top, followed by three circular photos showing a vintage Skipper doll modeling handmade doll clothes. Below these three circular photos is a larger rectangle, highlighting each outfit Skipper wears in the music video: pants with a 3/4 length sleeve shirt; a 50's style dress with bolero, and a pair of plaid shorts with a matching top. Musical notes dance across the lower right corner of the thumbnail.

New music video to inspire your crafts… With Skipper Simplicity patterns 5861!

  Sometimes I make doll clothes using other people’s patterns. I take lots of pictures, but what can I do with those pictures, since it’s not my pattern to offer up for free on this website? Today I decided to make another “Sewing Inspiration” video, using Simplicity’s 5861 doll clothes patterns for vintage Skipper, which I’m really enjoying making! As a fan of jazz, I … Continue reading New music video to inspire your crafts… With Skipper Simplicity patterns 5861!

On a purple background, we see the word "Closures" poised above three photos: one of a woman's hand holding a strip of blue Velcro, another showing a lineup of four different colors of 3 inch zippers, and a third image of tiny buttons in bright colors, resting in the palm of a woman's hand.

New in the Chelly Wood Store: Clasps, Buttons, Velcro, and More!

In my store (found under the “Shop” button in the main menu on my website), you can now purchase clasps, buttons, Velcro, and more. Today’s blog post details each of these items. Let’s start with clasps. I bought the overalls clasps shown in the palm of my hand above, from a store called I Sew for Doll on Etsy. They have quite a few tiny … Continue reading New in the Chelly Wood Store: Clasps, Buttons, Velcro, and More!

The image shows the size of these teeny-tiny miniature overalls clasps, as compared to a woman's hand. Each piece is so tiny, it's like the head of a straight pin!

Where do tiny clasps for dolls’ overalls come from? We should all be aware…

Recently I added a new item to my “Shop” page: closures. One of the items I’m linking to are clasps for Barbie-sized (or smaller) dolls’ overalls, and I’m doing this blog post because I like to be open and honest about where these notions are coming from. I buy my overall clasps (shown at the top of this page) from an Etsy store called simply … Continue reading Where do tiny clasps for dolls’ overalls come from? We should all be aware…

A quilted frame surrounds Simplicity Tressy Doll Clothes Pattern 5731 (Copyright 1964) along with the Chelly Wood dot com logo.

Learning to sew with Simplicity 5731 vintage Tressy doll clothes pattern #DollCollector #DollClothesPatterns

Do you see that blue price tag of 50 cents on my Simplicity 5731 Tressy doll clothes pattern? That’s literally how much I paid for these patterns, and this pattern set was cut, but only missing one piece; it was in a nearly-perfect envelope; and the directions were all there, in tact, and in perfect condition. Oooh! What a find! I must have had a … Continue reading Learning to sew with Simplicity 5731 vintage Tressy doll clothes pattern #DollCollector #DollClothesPatterns

Please excuse the mess while my website, ChellyWood.com, is under construction. The image shows a jumble of electrical cords attached to a computer screen that offers some sort of paper pattern like the paper doll clothes patterns that followers of ChellyWood.com can print and download for sewing projects.

Please Recommend a Website for Doll Crafters

Today I’d like to look at some of the creators and websites that inspire my doll clothes and doll craft designs. I’d also like to hear from you… Which doll collectors and doll crafters’ websites do you frequent online? Let us know in the comments! If you’re looking for inspiration, Pinterest has a plethora of doll craft ideas (and some free patterns) that can fill your … Continue reading Please Recommend a Website for Doll Crafters

The image shows a Mattel Barbie doll with dark chocolate complexion modeling a beautiful white wedding dress with thin spaghetti straps and a very full skirt. The text reads "free pattern" and the Chelly Wood dot com logo appears in one corner of the turquoise blue background frame.

How to sew a beautiful (but kind of easy) wedding dress for Barbie w/free patterns @ ChellyWood.com

  For your free patterns and tutorial videos, please scroll down to the second set of bullets. I honestly believe today’s sewing project is not too difficult, even for those of you who are just getting your feet wet, when it comes to sewing. The trickiest part is sewing the bodice to the thickly gathered skirt, but as long as you’re using high-quality felt for … Continue reading How to sew a beautiful (but kind of easy) wedding dress for Barbie w/free patterns @ ChellyWood.com